Nativus
by Maveriqua
Summary: When the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise run across a mysterious object, they discover a new race of extraterrestrials based entirely upon the elements. Now, they must travel around the galaxy in search of the element cards to restore a lost civilization. Rated T just to be safe. Slight Barcrush. Takes place after "Hollow Pursuits".
1. Chapter 1: Emergency

**Hi peoples!**

**Sorry for the formatting issue last update. Hope you enjoy the story now that you can read it!**

**I own nothing!**

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Nativus (Latin)- native, natural, innate, connatural, inborn, elementaL

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_Captain's Log_

_Stardate: 4759.2_

_Our newest mission from Starfleet is to investigate a planet outside of Federation Territory in that the Romulans have taken interest in, dubbed X-73-93. The planet has not yet yielded any obvious resources, but if the Romulans are interested, then we are also..._

"Where is he?" asked Geordi.

"Where is who?" asked Data, who was down in Engineering on break.

"Barclay!" said Geordi, frustrated, "He's late for his shift! Again!" He sighed. "Computer, where is Lieutenant Barclay?"

"Lieutenant Barclay is not on the Enterprise," replied the computer.

"What?" asked Geordi.

"Lieutenant Barclay is not on the Enterprise."

Data frowned. "Strange. I was not aware that Lieutenant Barclay was on leave."

Geordi frowned also. "Neither was I."

Suddenly, the Captain called. "Mr. Data, Mr. LaForge, please report to Deck Fourteen. Mr. Worf has informed me that there's something you might want to see."

Geordi and Data exchanged worried glances. Geordi pressed his badge. "On our way."

"What could be going on?" wondered Data.

Geordi shook his head. "I don't know. I'm worried, though. First Barclay goes missing, and now..."

He stopped short when he saw Deck Fourteen. There seemed to be a sheet of white blocking the passage. A very cold sheet of white. Lieutenant Worf was standing in front of it, his breath steaming.

"What the hell?" asked Geordi. "Computer, fix the climate control on Deck Fourteen!"

"Climate control on Deck Fourteen is operating within normal parameters."

Data blinked. "I was not aware that the normal parameters were below freezing."

Geordi shivered. "They're not." He walked up to Worf. "How did this happen?" he asked.

Worf was staring at the storm, as if trying to figure out how to attack it. "I do not know," he said, not looking away, "I was going to the holodeck to train and this was in the way."

"Any idea what's causing it?"

"None," replied Worf.

Data stepped up. "If I may... the storm seems to be moving in a circular fashion, much like hurricanes on earth. Perhaps if we find the eye..."

"We can find out what's causing it," said Geordi, relieved that a solution had presented itself.

Worf went first, holding his phasar in one hand and Geordi's hand in the other, who in turn held Data's hand so they could stay together. It wasn't easy. The winds were going at least fifty miles an hour, threatening to rip the group apart. As they drew closer to what they hoped was the center of the storm, as they couldn't tell direction in the pure whiteness, the wind seemed to get fiercer and the temperature colder, until Geordi couldn't feel his hands. Finally, the group stumbled into a windless area, chapped and frostbitten (except Data, who was trying to clear ice crystals off his nose). Geordi looked around, and saw icy wind swirling around them. In the center was a person, with a shocked expression on his face, encrusted in ice, hand closed around something Geordi couldn't see.

It was Barclay.

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	2. Chapter 2: Cause

**Here is a new chapter! Hope you enjoy!**

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_Space: The Final Frontier_

_These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise_

_It's continuing mission:_

_To explore strange new worlds_

_To seek out new life and new civilizations_

_To boldly go where no one has gone before_

"Barclay!" yelled Geordi.

He ran towards the frozen Barclay and grabbed his arm. Almost instantly, ice started spreading onto his hand. Geordi yelped in surprise and Data tugged him off. Geordi stumbled backwards and fell in the snow.

"Are you alright?" asked Worf.

Geordi nodded, breathing hard and looking at his hand, which was still frozen.

"Whatever you do, don't put your tongue on him," he said.

"Acknowledged," said Data.

"How are we supposed to get him out of here now?" asked Geordi, "Anyone who touches him will freeze!"

"Perhaps I can move him," said Data, "Seeing as I am not a biological life form, it is logical that I will not freeze as easily."

Worf pointed to Barclay's feet. "We will need to loosen the ice with our phasers first. He is frozen to the ground right now."

Geordi stood up and pulled out his phaser, and the others did likewise.

"On three," said Geordi, "One, two, three!"

All three of the group members shot their phasers at the base of the statue. After several minutes of shooting, they stopped. Data checked the base.

"The phasers are ineffective. When we melt the ice, it just freezes again. If anything, it is now stronger than before."

Geordi groaned. "We're so close! Any other ideas?"

Worf frowned. "What is that in Barclay's hand?"

Geordi looked at Barclay's clenched hand and moved closer. Barclay seemed to be holding an object that was close in size to a phasar, only thinner and clear.

"I have no idea."

Data moved to look at it. "It may be important. May I examine it?"

Geordi nodded. "Just drop it if you start freezing up."

Data reached out and tentatively plucked the card from Barclay's hands. The effect was instantaneous. The storm slowed and then finally stopped. The snow and ice that remained melted quickly, shrinking towards Barclay. When the last ice around Barclay's feet melted, the ice encrusting him dissolved. Barclay slumped to the ground. Worf pick him up and slung him over his shoulder.

"I'll take him to Sick Bay," he said. He nodded to Geordi."You had better come too. A hand encrusted in ice for five minutes is generally not a good thing."

Barclay shivered, wrapped in blanket while Dr. Crusher took diagnostics. After what seemed like hours, she closed her tricorder.

"Am I gonna live?" asked Barclay.

Dr. Crusher nodded. "It's amazing you're alive right now. My prescription is lots of rest and hot fluids. Take the day off, at least."

As Dr. Crusher walked off to treat another patient, Geordi sat down next to Barclay.

"How you doing, Reg?" he asked.

Barclay shrugged. "Besides become a human iceberg, fine."

Geordi gave him a half smile. "Figures. Listen, Reg, we'd like to know where you found the card you were holding. I mean, I understand if you don't want to talk about it but..."

"It's fine."

_Barclay was walking through the docking bay when he spotted something odd. On the back of one of the shuttles was a small clear card, surrounded by... Were those ice crystals? Barclay went closer, curious, and took the card off the shuttle. He put in his pocket, deciding to have it scanned when he got down to engineering for his shift. When he walked onto deck fourteen, the card grew cold in his pocket. Barclay reached into his pocket, confused, and withdrew the card. The last things he saw were tendrils of ice creeping down his arm..._

Barclay shuddered at the memory. "That's the last thing I remember before waking up here."

Geordi nodded. "So the card did cause all this."

Dr. Crusher came back over. "Alright, shoo. Reginald needs his rest."

Geordi looked up and grinned. "Someone has a crush!"

Dr. Crusher's eyes widened. "I do not! Now, go!"

Geordi made a heart with his hands, then ran out of Sickbay before Dr. Crusher could catch him.

** Question: Who would win in a fight, Data or Worf? **

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	3. Chapter 3: Gone

**Agh! I'm so sorry that I have not updated in awhile. i have gotten seriously off schedule, which is updating at least one story once a week. I'm so sorry. I will try to be more regular with my updates.**

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In the meeting room, an assembly had gathered consisting of Captain Picard, First Officer Riker, Geordi, Data, Dr. Crusher, Counselor Troi, and Worf. Data had pulled up a rotating image of the card on the presentation screen.

"We've scanned the card, and it seems that it is of Romulan origin," said Data.

"So the Romulans planted this?" asked Riker.

Data shrugged. "It is possible. However, the energy inside is not within their technological capabilities, at least that we know of."

Geordi frowned. "You're saying that they took the energy from somewhere else?"

Data nodded. "It is the most likely possibility. The energy reacts to biological substances, using them to dispense the energy."

Riker nodded. "That explains what happened to Barclay."

Picard frowned and sat forward. "Yes, but why that particular kind of energy? A snowstorm is destructive, yes, but a bit... unorthodox, coming from the Romulans."

"We may have a lead," said Data, sliding a datapad across the table. Captain Picard picked it up.

"The Nativus Project?"

Dr. Crusher sat forward eagerly. "I've heard of that! I wrote my senior thesis on it at the Academy."

Picard nodded. "Care to enlighten us, Dr. Crusher?"

"The Nativus Project," said Dr. Crusher, "had one aim: to create a super-race. A group of genetic scientists aimed to create beings that could bend the elements to their will. However, the project was shut down over fifty years ago due to lack of funding, and the elemental beings disappeared."

"Disappeared?" asked Riker.

"Most believe that they feared persecution from the Federation, and fled to a planet in the Delta Quadrant," Dr. Crusher concluded.

Picard blinked. "While that is a fascinating story, Dr, Crusher, I fail to see what that has to do with our present situation."

"The shuttle that Mr. Barclay found the card on," said Data, "had just done a flyby of Planet X-73-93."

Geordi frowned. "You're saying the card, or the energy at least, came from the planet?"

Data nodded. "Perhaps that is where they are."

_Captain's Log, Supplemental:_

_Having reached the planet, we have sent an away-team consisting of Commander Riker, Commander LaForge, Dr. Crusher, Lieutenant Data, and Mr. Worf to investigate the planet's surface. So far, the scanners show no life signs. However, our scanners have been tricked before. I hope this is one of those times._

As his atoms were dismantled and directed down to the planet, Geordi was nervous. Almost scared, in fact. As a Starfleet commander, he knew he couldn't show it. But he knew that something dangerous was down on that planet, and he really hoped he didn't have to meet it. After the transport was finished, Geordi couldn't have been more surprised. There was almost literally nothing. The planet was a desert, only it was not tan sand or even brown dirt. Just gray dust. Not the place that people who could control the elements would probably hang out.

"Hello?" yelled Commander Riker. "Hello?"

"Commander!" said Data, "I'm picking up a life sign. It's very faint, which explains why the ship did not pick it up."

Dr. Crusher hurried over. "Where's it coming from?"

"Everyone!" yelled Worf, "Over here!"

Geordi turned around, Worf was standing on top of a large hill, the only distinctive feature in this landscape. Geordi climbed to the top and gasped.

"What is it?" asked Dr. Crusher, climbing up next to him, then saw what he was looking at.

"Oh, no."

Stretching before them was a town, or, rather, what was once a town. What looked like the town square had been blackened and burned. The buildings had crumbled and were scarred with phaser burns. There had been a fight here. There was no question about it.

"The Romulans have destroyed everything," said Worf.

"If anyone is here, they will most likely be down there," said Data.

Riker nodded. "Let's go."

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**So, kind of depressing I guess. I really need to know how I am doing, so this will be the last chapter until I get at least ten reviews!**

**Please be quick, I have lots more ideas.**


	4. Chapter 4: Ice

**And I am back! Thanks to Tedra for reviewing!**

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It was depressing, really. Riker could see that this had once been a nice town. Now it was nothing, a ghost town. Riker could not believe what the Romulans would destroy to get their own way. They were going to get a beating when this was all over. The fact that finding one life sign on a whole planet was like finding a needle in a haystack was doing nothing to improve his mood.

As the small group walked through the town, Riker spotted something odd: a shuttle. Like the ones on the Enterprise, only instead of white, it was the same dusty gray color of everything else. Crates were stacked in front of the entrance, completely filling it. Curious, Riker knocked on the boxes like he was knocking on a door. After a minute, a small scratching sound was heard behind the boxes. Riker called everyone over, and they moved away the boxes to clear the doorway. Dr. Crusher gasped. Behind the door, hand outstretched, barely touching the crates, was a young girl, a teenager. Her skin was gray, and so was her short hair. Her colorless eyes were half closed. She wasn't moving.

The crew transported back to the ship, taking the girl with them. They took the girl to Sick Bay, where Dr. Crusher ran scans on her. After about thirty minutes, Dr. Crusher closed her tricorder.

"Well?" asked Riker.

"Acute exhaustion and malnutrition," said Dr. Crusher.

Riker shook his head. "Poor kid."

"Any other survivors?" asked Captain Picard, who had heard the news and had come to Sick Bay.

"If there were, our tricorders didn't pick it up," replied Riker.

Picard nodded sadly. "Keep me posted, Dr. Crusher," he said.

Riker and the Captain walked out of Sick Bay. As Dr. Crusher turned around to enter some data into the computer, the girl's hand slowly moved towards the card that was being kept on the table beside her. The girl's fingers closed around the card. She sighed, smiled, and a little color came back into her cheeks.

Riker walked into Ten Forward and sat down heavily at the bar. He groaned.

Guinea walked up to him. "Long day?" she asked.

Riker sighed. "You have no idea." He looked down at the dull gray planet spinning below them.

"Why do people do this kind of thing, Guinea? No matter what they have, or what they will have, they always want more. And sometimes, they do horrible things to get it."

Guinea shrugged. "Well, some people are kind of loopy. But you can't change that."

Riker nodded. "I know, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Commander!" came Dr. Crusher's voice, from his badge. "I need a security team in Sick Bay, ASAP!"

Riker's eyes widened. "On my way!"

The first thing Worf thought on entering Sick Bay was Not again!

There was snow on the floor, and ice crystals decorated some of the shelves, making Sick Bay look like an ice cave. Dr. Crusher was standing by an empty bed, taking the blanket off and wrapping it around a shivering patient.

"What happened?" Worf asked her.

Dr. Crusher shook her head. "I turn my back on the kid for one second-one second!-and next thing I know the girl's gone and Sick Bay looks like a fat man in a red suit should be running around going 'Ho, Ho, Ho!'"

Worf groaned inwardly. This was not good. What else could go wrong? Just then, he spotted something on one of the empty beds. It looked an awful lot like...

Dr. Crusher saw what he was looking at and sucked in a breath. One the bed was the card, the thing that had started this whole problem. It was broken in half, and had lost it's clarity. It was black with streaks of grey, drained.

Worf turned to his security team.

"Keep a look out for a small girl, and put a team in the docking bay."

Someone had gotten away, and now they had the power the create an ice storm. This was really not good.

The 'someone' in question was panicking. She had no idea where she was, or who these people were. The last she remembered before waking up here was a pain in her arm. Her arm felt fine, but her memories were still hazy. All she knew was that she had to get back home. And outrun the two yellow-shirted guys chasing her. They had spotted her a few minutes after she had left the hospital-looking room she had been in. She had been running for about five minutes and was starting to get worn out. Suddenly she ran into something. She bounced back and winced. She put her hand up to where she had stopped, and blue sparks of electricity surrounded her hand. A forcefield. She turned around. The two men had stopped and pulled out their phasars. The girl put up her hands in a sparring position.

"Come one step closer," she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "I dare you."

The two men looked at each other and shrugged. One of them started to move towards her. The girl flicked her hand, and ice encrusted the man's feet, freezing them to the floor. The man yelped.

"I did warn you," the girl said.

"That's enough," snapped a voice behind her.

Riker hurried to Sick Bay, closely followed by Data and Counselor Troi. His head was ? He did a double take when he saw the girl. She was standing with her back to him, facing two security guards. Riker only recognized her by the frayed light blue tunic she was wearing. Other then that, she looked almost nothing like the unconscious girl they had found in the shuttle. Her hair was pale blond, and her pale grey eyes were flashing with determination.

"Come one step closer," she was saying. "I dare you."

One of the security officers moved towards her. The girl made a gesture with her hand as if to swat a fly, and ice encrusted the officer's feet.

Riker's eyes widened. He had to stop this before it got out of hand.

"That's enough," he said, trying to sound authoritative.

The girl jumped and turned around. Her eyes widened at the sight of more people behind her. She looked back at the security guards. She seemed to be considering her options.

"Please calm down!" said Counselor Troi. "We don't want to hurt you."

The girl snorted. "Yeah, right. Like those pointy-eared guys didn't want to hurt me, I'm sure."

Riker raised an eyebrow. "Pointy-eared guys? You mean the Romulans?"

The girl waved a hand dismissively, and one of the security guards near her backed up nervously, perhaps afraid of being frozen. "If that's what you call 'em, yeah."

"Did they attack you?" Deanna asked worriedly.

The girl nodded. "Well yeah, they-" She broke off suddenly. "Wait, you know nothing about this?"

"We only got here approximately two hours ago," said Data.

The girl raised her eyebrows.

"It seems there has been a misunderstanding," Data continued. "Perhaps we should go to the Captain's office and sort this out."

The girl looked in between the security team and the Commander's team again. She raised her hand in front of her and shot ice at the forcefield. It evaporated in a shower of sparks. She sighed. "I guess I don't have choice."

Riker warily turned off the forcefield. The girl stepped out timidly. She glared warily at the team.

"You pull a phasar out..."

"We won't," Riker assured her.

As they walked to the Captain's office, Data thought of something. "Pardon me," he said, "but I do not believe I ever learned your name."

The girl looked at him. "Fría. Fría Nativus."

"Fría," Data mused, "Frío. How apt."

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**Alright, I had to stick Guinea in here. Please review!**


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